SightMate Device Helps Partially-Sighted People and Colourblind

Although the SightMate looks like a pair of those video glasses, it actually improves the sight of people with poor eyesight. A two-megapixel camera with 3x zoom sits in the middle of the outer frame and feeds images to a double 640 x 480 display inside the glasses.

There is even compensation for colourblindness, and people with 20/70 and 20/200 acuity can get 20/20 to 20/40 vision wearing the device. Rather like the warnings on sleeping tablets, the manufacturers do not suggest you drive (or, let’s assume, operate heavy machinery) when using it. All this tech doesn’t come cheap, however: the SightMate is available for around US$3,500—that’s US$2,500 more expensive than most video glasses. [Eyetonomy via DailyTech —Thanks Kyle and Demetrius]